Playoff round 1: Kaneland (8-1) vs. Hampshire (6-3)

Kaneland’s Class 5A playoff journey begins with a home matchup as a No. 5 seed against the 6-3 Hampshire Whip-purs,
a No. 12 seed, on Friday at 7 p.m.

The winner faces either No. 4 Joliet Catholic or No. 13 Urban Prep Charter/Englewood of Chicago the following week.

While Kaneland outscored foes by an average of 40-12, Hampshire outscored its opponents by an average of 32-23. Hampshire, coached by Dan Cavanaugh in his 25th season, enters the playoff hunt after a 3-6 record in 2012.

The Whip-purs, of the Fox Valley Conference’s Fox Division, had its three losses come at the hands of Crystal Lake Central, Grayslake North and Cary-Grove. The Knights and Whip-purs had a common opponent in the form of DeKalb, which lost to Kaneland, 35-12, and Hampshire in a 35-34 slugfest.

Hampshire is in the postseason action for the first time since 2008 when it was a 4A school. Kaneland has Hampshire as a first round opponent after dealing with Belvidere in 2011 and 2012, with the Knights looking to remedy a second-round elimination at the hands of Lincoln-Way West a year ago.